in which they would not make converts to the Established Church, they would alienate a great amount of support: thousands of children would be left subject to the worst temptations, and the interests of true religion would be prejudiced, not advanced; and to Mr. Buller he pointed out the prejudice which would accrue to the cause of education, by accompanying the measure with a diversion of former charitable bequests. Mr. Hawes objected to the constitution of the proposed school trusts, as likely to be thought too exclusive by the Dissenters. Mr. Acland threw out some cautions with respect to particular points; and particularly against prejudging the question, which system of education was the best. Mr. Smith O'Brien concurred with Mr. Hawes, and objected to the exclusion of Roman Catholics. Lord Ashley thanked the House for the attention which he had received; and the motion was agreed to. Another proposition having in view the relief of the industrious classes from their depressed condition was brought forward on a later occasion by Mr. Charles Buller, who on the 8th of April submitted to the House of Commons a plan for an extensive system of colonisation, as a method of diverting the superfluous labour of the country into more profitable channels than the home market could afford. The speech with which this motion was introduced was universally allowed to exhibit great ability, and it was remarkably free from the topics or spirit of partisanship. Mr. Buller began, after presenting several petitions in fa lonisation, by remarking a characteristic of the present House of Commons, that more than any former one it discouraged party strifes; admonished no doubt by the warnings of the severe distress which prevailed. He guarded himself against being supposed to represent the difficulties of the country as unparalleled or desperate; but the discussion of Lord Howick's motion, for a Committee of the whole House on the manufacturing depression, elicited an universal agreement as to the existence and intensity of the distress, and an entire disagreement as to the remedies proposed. It could not be denied that the growth of the country in wealth was proceeding less rapidly than at a former period. The extent of the evil proved that it had no partial causes, peculiar to particular trades or classes; and temporary causes did not suffice to account for it. Over-production in manufactures, for instance, did not explain it, because simultaneously with that overproduction, not only was capital not withdrawn from other ordinary occupations, but never was there so much capital lying idle; and simultaneously with the employment of labour in that overproduction there had been a great emigration of labourers, the workhouses were crowded by able-bodied men, and numbers more failed to obtain employment. Had there not been that overproduction there would only have been less employment of labour and capital. The United States too shewed the working of the same temporary causes, but without producing the same result. Since 1836 the history of the trade of the United States had intervals of stagnation. "I doubt," said Mr. Everett, in the wise and feeling answer he recently made to a deputation of holders of stock, "I doubt if in the history of the world in so short a period such a transition had been made from a state of high prosperity to one of general distress as in the United States within the last six years." And yet, what had been the effect on the condition of the masses in that country? Had we heard of what we should call distress among the quiet traders and artizans of the United States? Of any inability to employ capital with ordinary profit? Of any general want of employment for labourers? Of any great depression of wages? Or of anything which we should call the extreme of destitution? Had ever the unscrupulous demagogues of their hustings or their press ventured to describe such sad scenes as those which official inspection had shown to have been but too frequent at Bolton and Stockport? Had they heard in that country of human beings living huddled together, in defiance of comforts, of shame, and of health, in garrets and in cellars, and in the same hovels with their pigs? Had they heard of large and sudden calls on the bounty of individuals, of parishes, or of the Government?of workhouses crowded ?—of even the gaol resorted to for shelter and maintenance? — of human beings prevented from actually dying of starvation in the open streets, or of others allowed to expire from inanition in the obscurity of their own dwelling places? The plain fact was, that though hundreds of enterprises had failed, and enormous amounts of capital had been sacriticed, and hundreds that were wealthy at sunrise had been beggars ere the same sun was set, and thousands had been suddenly deprived of the work and wages of the day before, yet capital and labour had never failed to find immediate employment in that boundless field. There must then in this country be a deeper seated and permanent cause of suffering; and that was the constant accumulation of capital, and the constant increase of population within the same restricted field of employment. Every year added its profits to the amount of capital previously accumulated, and certainly left the population considerably larger at its close than it was at its commencement. This fresh amount both of capital and population have to be employed; and if no further space for their employment be provided, they must compete for a share of the previous amount of profit and wages. New discoveries in nature and art, even in agriculture, did not suffice to keep pace in extending the field of employment, with the extension of capital and population. Witness the overstocking of professions, the competition between tradesmen, farmers, and educated females, for whom fit employment was so limited; the deplorable state of the labouring classes, manufacturing and agricultural, depicted in the violent recriminations between the Anti-Corn-law lecturers and farmers' friends; 15,000 milliners in the metropolis killing themselves with overwork in close rooms; all consequences of one leading fact, that every year rolling over our heads adds 300,000 to the population. Contrast with this in which they would not make converts to the Established Church, they would alienate a great amount of support: thousands of children would be left subject to the worst temptations, and the interests of true religion would be prejudiced, not advanced; and to Mr. Buller he pointed out the prejudice which would accrue to the cause of education, by accompanying the measure with a diversion of former charitable bequests. Mr. Hawes objected to the constitution of the proposed school trusts, as likely to be thought too exclusive by the Dissenters. Mr. Acland threw out some cautions with respect to particular points; and particularly against prejudging the question, which system of education was the best. Mr. Smith O'Brien concurred with Mr. Hawes, and objected to the exclusion of Roman Catholics. Lord Ashley thanked the House for the attention which he had received; and the motion was agreed to. Another proposition having in view the relief of the industrious classes from their depressed condition was brought forward on a later occasion by Mr. Charles Buller, who on the 8th of April submitted to the House of Commons a plan for an extensive system of colonisation, as a method of diverting the superfluous labour of the country into more profitable channels than the home market could afford. The speech with which this motion was introduced was universally allowed to exhibit great ability, and it was remarkably free from the topics or spirit of partisanship. Mr. Buller began, after presenting several petitions in fa lonisation, by remarking a characteristic of the present House of Commons, that more than any former one it discouraged party strifes; admonished no doubt by the warnings of the severe distress which prevailed. He guarded himself against being supposed to represent the difficulties of the country as unparalleled or desperate; but the discussion of Lord Howick's motion, for a Committee of the whole House on the manufacturing depression, elicited an universal agreement as to the existence and intensity of the distress, and an entire disagreement as to the remedies proposed. It could not be denied that the growth of the country in wealth was proceeding less rapidly than at a former period. The extent of the evil proved that it had no partial causes, peculiar to particular trades or classes; and temporary causes did not suffice to account for it. Over-production in manufactures, for instance, did not explain it, because simultaneously with that overproduction, not only was capital not withdrawn from other ordinary occupations, but never was there so much capital lying idle; and simultaneously with the employment of labour in that overproduction there had been a great emigration of labourers, the workhouses were crowded by able-bodied men, and numbers more failed to obtain employment. Had there not been that overproduction there would only have been less employment of labour and capital. The United States too shewed the working of the same temporary causes, but without producing the same result. Since 1836 the history of the trade of the United States had intervals of stagnation. "I doubt," said Mr. Everett, in the wise and feeling answer he recently made to a deputation of holders of stock, "I doubt if in the history of the world in so short a period such a transition had been made from a state of high prosperity to one of general distress as in the United States within the last six years." And yet, what had been the effect on the condition of the masses in that country? Had we heard of what we should call distress among the quiet traders and artizans of the United States? Of any inability to employ capital with ordinary profit? Of any general want of employment for labourers? Of any great depression of wages? Or of anything which we should call the extreme of destitution? Had ever the unscrupulous demagogues of their hustings or their press ventured to describe such sad scenes as those which official inspection had shown to have been but too frequent at Bolton and Stockport ? Had they heard in that country of human beings living huddled together, in defiance of comforts, of shame, and of health, in garrets and in cellars, and in the same hovels with their pigs? Had they heard of large and sudden calls on the bounty of individuals, of parishes, or of the Government ?of workhouses crowded?-of even the gaol resorted to for shelter and maintenance ? - of human beings prevented from actually dying of starvation in the open streets, or of others allowed to expire from inanition in the obscurity of their own dwelling places? The plain fact was, that though hundreds of enterprises had failed, and enormous amounts of capital had been sacriticed, and hundreds that were wealthy at sunrise had been beggars ere the same sun was set, and thousands had been suddenly deprived of the work and wages of the day before, -yet capital and labour had never failed to find immediate employment in that boundless field. of There must then in this country be a deeper seated and permanent cause of suffering; and that was the constant accumulation capital, and the constant increase of population within the same restricted field of employment. Every year added its profits to the amount of capital previously accumulated, and certainly left the population considerably larger at its close than it was at its commencement. This fresh amount both of capital and population have to be employed; and if no further space for their employment be provided, they must compete for a share of the previous amount of profit and wages. New discoveries in nature and art, even in agriculture, did not suffice to keep pace in extending the field of employment, with the extension of capital and population. Witness the overstocking of professions, the competition between tradesmen, farmers, and educated females, for whom fit employment was so limited; the deplorable state of the labouring classes, manufacturing and agricultural, depicted in the violent recriminations between the Anti-Corn-law lecturers and farmers' friends; 15,000 milliners in the metropolis killing themselves with overwork in close rooms; all consequences of one leading fact, that every year rolling over our heads adds 300,000 to the population. Contrast with this of the Lowel Factory, in the United States; the girls with their pianoforte, and circulating library, all with their money saved, on which they could retreat to comfortable homes, if the factory stopped to-morrow; while with us every change in the circumstances of a trade, every fluctuation of fashion, involved masses of our people in destitution. Assertions of general improvement in the condition of the people did not disprove the extent of the misery. He doubted whether there ever before was in this country such a mass of intense physical suffering and moral degradation as was to be found in this metropolis, in the cellars and garrets of Liverpool and Manchester, and in the yet more wretched alleys of Glasgow; and he had very little doubt that there never before prevailed in any portion of our population, vice so habitual and so gross as was there to be found. The general comfort of the great body was increased; but so also was the misery of the most wretched. We witnessed constantly more of the extreme of suffering-we had a positively larger number of the dangerous classes in the country. Even the increased knowledge of the people aggravated their sense of suffering; the popular temper grew more and more dangerous to the interests of property and order; partial knowledge, acting on general ignorance, begot wild visions of political and social changes; and all efforts to improve the condition of the people must begin with bettering their physical condition, and, satisfying the simple but expressive cry: "A fair day's wages for a fair be done by opening a wider field of employment, and diminishing that terrible competition of capital with capital, and labour with labour, which was the permanent cause of the distress. To that end, Mr. Buller desired the House to inquire into the efficacy of colonization as a remedy for distress not the remedy; for he did not come into collision with other economical remedies that had been proposed. To free-trade he proposed colonization as an auxiliary. The advocates of free-trade wished to bring food to the people. He suggested, at the same time, to take the people to the food. They wished to get fresh markets by removing the barriers which now kept us from them throughout the world. He asked the House, in addition, to get fresh markets, by calling them into existence in parts of the world which might be made to teem with valuable customers. Colonization would, perhaps, be slower than free-trade, in the operation of extending the field of employment; but it would be surer, for it was a process entirely depending on this country, and not on the concurrence of others. Within the last two years no less than six hostile tariffs had been passed, more or less narrowing the demand for our manufactures. He said then that in the present day, the restrictive policy of other nations must enter into our consideration as an element, and no unimportant element, of commercial policy; and, though his advice was to set the example of free-trade to other nations, and extend our intercourse with them to the very utmost, still at the same time, to take care to be continually creating and enlarging |